Windows 8 Explorer returns to XP roots, picks up ribbon UI on the way

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We have good news and bad news. The bad: In possibly the longest blog post ever, Alex Simons from the Windows 8 management team has spent over 3,000 words justifying the addition of the infamous ribbon UI to Explorer in Windows 8. The good: Microsoft, either to soften the blow of the ribbon or simply to prove that someone at Redmond cares, is bringing back the much-loved Up button which, for some reason or another, met its untimely demise between XP and the release of Vista.

Those are the two biggest changes, but citing a ton of telemetry from Windows 7 and iterative testing, Microsoft has gone to town and made a metric ton of modifications to Windows 8 Explorer. For a start, the switch to the ribbon really does seem justified: users wanted more keyboard shortcuts and more of their most-used features front and center in the UI — and that’s exactly what the ribbon does. In Windows 8, there will be something in the region of 200 commands available from four ribbon tabs — and every single one of them will have a keyboard shortcut.

Windows 8 also heralds the return of customizability. Windows XP Explorer could be almost entirely rejigged — but Vista and 7, except for context menu add-ons, are virtually unchangeable. While the ribbon interface itself isn’t customizable, its buddy the Quick Access Toolbar is: just minimize the ribbon, add your favorite functions to the QAT, and voila: a customizable interface that looks like a spit-shined Windows XP.

The rest of the changes — and there a lot — nearly all revolving around the ribbon. As you can see in the screenshot below, there are context tabs depending on where you are in the file system, or what you’re trying to do. If you type in a search, the Search Tools tab is focused. From My Computer there’s a Disk Tools tab that exposes Disk Defragmenter, Cleanup, Format, eject, and so on. If you select an image (or a group of images?) the Picture Tools tab comes into play. There are probably other context tabs, too.

Microsoft also touches upon the ramifications of using the very fat ribbon on widescreen displays: over 40% of Windows 7 installations are on laptops with 1366×768 screens, and at some 115 pixels tall, the ribbon takes up an inordinate amount of real estate. To this end, the Windows 8 team has removed a lot of the cruft from the bottom of the Explorer window, and the pointless header bar from the top. Instead of that fat “Image Properties” pane at the bottom, it’s now on the right. The bottom, in actual fact, is a return to the Windows XPesque single-line status bar. The end result, as you can see below, is a bit more vertical space than Windows 7 — but still a fair bit less than Windows XP. If you want to see all of these changes in action, there’s a demonstration video at the end of the story that’s worth watching.

Finally, power users will overjoyed to hear that Open Command Prompt (and Open Command Prompt as Administrator!) are now available from the File menu. These functions open a command prompt with your current folder as the active directory; very, very handy if you need to do a quick bit of CLI-fu. Do all of these changes make up for the addition of the much-maligned ribbon? You tell us.

Alternatively, the Microsoft Build conference is now just two weeks away, and ExtremeTech is attending — so hopefully we’ll be able to get some hands-on experience with Windows 8 and tell you whether the ribbon rocks or not.

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mori bund

Good news!
Finally the end of the “Apple-ification” of Windows and the return of customizability.
What annoys me most about Vista/7, is that MS thought they have to conform to a 5-10% competitor and take away choices and options from us users.
This “We know better what the user wants than the user himself!”-mentality is one reason why I never would buy an Apple-product.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk Sebastian Anthony

Hrm, I don’t think ‘more choice’ is _always_ correct. If anything, Apple has proven that if you engineer something properly, a lot of people will use it without complaints.

There will always be people who want more choice, more options, more variety — and I agree, it’s good that Windows caters to that crowd.

mori bund

Of course there’s a target group for everything, so also for people who don’t like to too much choices.
Look at the market share of Apple and you know how big this group is: on desktop Apple will never grow more than 15% – 20% of the market and on smartphones they will end up with the same numbers in 2-3 years, while the “more choice”-system android will have a market share of ~80%.
BTW: I think “more choice” is always better, when it’s integrated in the gui in the right way – and for people who don’t like “more choice” there are always the “default options”.

Anonymous

There’s no point in talking about market share. A report in 2008 showed that Apple alone sells about 66% of computers above $1000. The market share argument is great for the low priced market, but most PCs of any capability cost… $1000+.

Anonymous

I meant to post…

There’s no point in talking about market share. A report in 2008 showed that Apple alone sells about 66% of computers above $1000. The market share argument is great for the low priced market, but most PCs of any capability cost… $1000+.

Profit is what counts when selling computers, not market share.

The market share of Android is more than iOS… but phones aren’t sold only on choice. They are sold as incentives for contracts. Most people who choose iPhones gladly pay more for the contracts. The same can’t be said for Android phones. The race to the bottom, which is what it amounts to with the free OS Android, is all theirs to have.

Choice is not a good thing at all times. Some examples.

Car pedal arrangements. If there was a “choice” here, there would be more accidents caused by pedal confusion.

The list goes on… All “choices”. All confusing. None helpful. The end result is about the same in performance and quality.

Why do you believe computer users should have to go through the same nonsense like these examples just to satisfy your desire for “choice”?

DVD has ONE standard. Everyone can use it. No “choice”. A DVD is a DVD.
The extra “choices” do little to help the end user, and rarely are the different “choices” any better than the most common item. I have yet to see a “choice” that helps anything other than cheating people out of their money.

mori bund

@ “Profit is what counts when selling computers, not market share.”
My point wasn’t about who makes more profit. My point was about what users prefer: choice or no choice.

@”Why do you believe computer users should have to go through the same nonsense like these examples just to satisfy your desire for “choice”?”
First, it’s not just _MY_ desire for choice. This was the point, that my previous comment was about: Apple’s market share will never go over 20%, because 80% prefer “more choice”.
Second, as I’ve written in my comment above (have you actually read it?), for people who don’t like “more choice” there are always the “default options”. They won’t be bother by “more choices” when they are integrated in the gui in the right way.

@your DVD-comparison.
You can’t compare industry standards like a media standard or car pedals with the possibility to adjust your pc to your individual needs.
Sorry, but that ridiculous!

Anonymous

Henry Ford once said “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse.”

People have proven to be the most unreliable when deciding what they need. No matter how many people say they want it, a choice that adds confusion or reduces productivity is not good.

If one guy uses the ribbon, and another doesn’t, can the guy who uses the ribbon help the guy who doesn’t use the ribbon?

“How do I delete this folder?”
“Just click where it says delete.”
“I don’t see that. Where is it?”
“It should be on your screen, right above the files.”
“All I have above the files is ….”

And that’s just one brief scenario. Now imagine trying to help a guy who has customized his ribbon to include his favorite commands, but with none of the standard ones in the standard place. How do you help him when he needs it?

Do you think IT departments like wasting their time fixing software because some idiot decided to “customize” it? I hated doing it in 1996, and I hate doing it now! This ribbon nonsense will only mean more wasted time.

There should be one or two ways to access a command. Not ten million. This is not something R&D should be wasting their time on.

mori bund

As Henry Ford said this, he doesn’t mean “Choices” so it’s quite unfair and questionable to quote him out of context.

And it’s arrogant to deny people their ability to choose. (You could bring the very same arguments against democracy!)

So you want ignore all the people who want a delete-button for a few beginners who are unable to find this button on their first time with a new interface.
As I said already a few times. For these people is the default interface or the default options. Others should have the possibility to change it.
Remember the Windows Explorer in XP: you had your default interface for the people you’re talking about.
But power users could change the bars and the buttons. Both sides had what they wanted.

And BTW: those IT-department earn good money with us “idiots”.
You “hate doing it now”? Well, this isn’t about you!

Anonymous

Where did the desire for the ribbon come from? Feedback from customers. The very kind of feedback that Henry Ford was talking about. Arrogant to deny choice? Well, he was arrogant then. And people had the choice to not buy his cars… What happened?

Do you get to choose your car in hot pink from a car dealer? No? How arrogant of them to deny you your choice of colors.

Do you get to choose the brand of car stereo in a car you buy? No.
Do you get to choose the location of the ignition switch in your new car? No.
Do you get to choose the switchgear for your car’s windows? No.
Do you get to choose the size of the sun visors? The size of the mirrors? No.
How about the location of the switches for the wipers? No.

How arrogant of them to deny you the choice to have what you can have in a car you’re paying tens of thousands for. It’s undemocratic? Who are they to tell their customers they can’t have what they want? Oddly enough… people never complain about it. They learn how to accept and use what is provided. They don’t generally try to customize it.

Choice? Right!!

And…

If you think IT departments “earn good money” for the company, it shows you really don’t understand what is important to businesses.

IT departments are cost centers. Nothing more. They do not improve productivity, nor do they generate income for the business. They are there mostly to restore the productivity lost when a device breaks. Just like auto mechanics. Ever notice that companies buy cars that require less and less maintenance? Well, computer reliability is a similar issue.

If I see increased IT costs when a new OS is deployed, I have no choice but evaluate whether the upgrade was the right choice. I could care less about the features of the OS when it’s losing my company money.

mori bund

There ‘s a good reason why car/Computer-comparisons almost never work.
While you can only choose between 3 desktop-OS you’re able choose between a gazillion different car models in all shapes, colors, etc. So again you have lots of choices.

BTW: what happened with Henry Ford? Great example! Thank you!
The competitors started to bring a lot of new car models every year, so the costumers – always happy when they can choose – started to buy them and Fords market share declined.
So he also had to produce new models every year to stay in business – you know: people wants to choose! Nowaday every car company presents news models to choose from every year.
Once again: thank you! Great example! :-))

Of course: businesses can always decide to provide no choices.
Like Apple does it. This is why Apple’s market share is under 10% on the desktop and it’s decreasing on the smartphone sector.
You want to tell me what’s important to business?
Well, costumers don’t care what’s important to business – they care about what it’s important to them!
And the market shares tell rather explicitly what’s important to them. ^^

Anonymous

Choices you keep saying.

In the beginning of the car boom, Ford Model T was not the only choice. But it was the top selling car for almost 20 years. It took that long for the market to catch up. Once it did, Ford couldn’t satisfy everyone any more, and the market changed. Just like it is today.

Attacking the Henry Ford quote by talking about the end of the Model T reign is fruitless because it misses the whole point. He was not talking about longevity. He talked about choices people make. And at the time the statement was made, the choices most people had were a Model T Ford, or a horse. All other cars were too expensive for the general man.

The same thing is true of the Citroën 2CV, VW Bug, Fiat 500, Mini, Robin Reliant, Lada, Trabant. These represented the only available cars most could afford in their countries.

As the car market matured and other manufacturers cut costs, their prices came down, and more choices were then affordable, and therefore viable. The reign of the Model T was over.

Ford made new models, but people wanted more than Ford was offering or could offer.

Microsoft is in the same boat here.

Today, there’s a choice of a Windows PC, or a smaller, lighter device. The Windows PC is the Model T Ford of the computer industry. As new methods of computing come along (smart phones), new dynamics are created. Adding features to Windows doesn’t make it more desirable to anyone but Windows lovers. And guess what. Most people aren’t Windows lovers. Users, yes. Not lovers.

Do you think all the Model T owners were Model T lovers? notice they all abandoned their Model Ts for other car models.

I was a Windows lover at one point. Then I worked in IT and realized how bad Windows was. We had tons of problems with Windows, but none with our Macs or Unix systems. But there was no viable alternative. There is now.

And right you are. People don’t care what’s important to business. They care what’s important to them. Which is why XP is still more popular than Window 7. And why the iPad is more popular than Windows tablets. And iPhone is more popular than Windows Mobile 6.5 or 7, or Symbian. And people and businesses are now choosing tablets over PCs in many applications now.

Microsoft can work on new “ribbons” and frilly stuff for Windows all they want. The market is moving away and they’re ignoring it in arrogant dismissal.

Finally, a bit of history.
Apple had less than 10% of the computer market in 1986. Before Windows. You really think Windows is the reason they have a smaller market share? I would have sworn it had something to do with IBM. In 1983, IBM PC was introduced, attacking Apple’s growing PC market. IBM PC, from the well known name in computers, took off. Apple answered with the Lisa and Mac. Businesses didn’t care about GUIs. They cared about the software they could run, which was not on the Mac.

I’m not going to continue. Read up on Computer history and learn about when and how Windows became relevant.

mori bund

You are right!
Ford’s model T was so successful, because it was cheap enough for the masses to buy.
It was the first car achievable for the middle class.
As soon as other cars in various shapes, colours etc were achievable Ford had to embrace the fact that people want choices.

“Adding features to Windows doesn’t make it more desirable to anyone but Windows lovers”?
I think you are wrong here. Adding features makes it more desirable for all Windows-users. (I’m not a Windows-lover at all, but it makes more desirable for me.)

There are many reasons why 90% are Windows users and not Apple users. You have explained some with your lesson in computer history (Thank you, teacher! ;-)) That doesn’t make the reasons I’ve mentioned less true. When you ask 10 people if they prefer more choices, 9 will agree. (The 10th is probably an Apple user.)
Look at the developement at the smartphone market nowadays: Apple with his “almost-communist one-model-with one-interface-for-all-philosophy” had the advantage of being the first, but in an amazing short time Google has passed Apple.

You went from Windows to Apple?
Well, we really have a different taste in our software, becaus I’m about to change from Windows to Linux with KDE4. :-)
Ever tried KDE4? I’m pretty sure you would hate it! ;-) Too many choices!

I agree with you that the ribbon is not the most elegant way to manage the Windows Explorer.
But the article says users are able to minimize it and have an Xp-like customizable interface.
That’s what I hope for.

OK, this was an interesting debate, but I understand that you don’t want to continue: I don’t think I can convince you and of course you can’t convince me.

So see you in another thread. ^^

Anonymous

I went from Windows to Linux. Back in 1999-2005 I was mostly on Linux. I refused Windows installations at work, and used only Linux there, with StarOffice. Loved it. HP Omnibook 6000 with Linux was sweet.

Linux was great. Stable, always worked, no crashing… And no software. The things I wanted to do were too tiresome to deal with on there. Video codecs (I hate VLC), printer drivers, games, scanners, and more. I could not get them working without long protracted sessions of installing, modifying scripts, testing and such. It’s great that it was stable once installed, but moving from one system to another was also laborious.

But… On a laptop is was even worse. Moving from one hotspot to another wasn’t as simple as it should have been. And then the driver issue came up again as printing to new printers was again a pain. My HP Omnibook went from desk to bag and back to desk. I never used it outside the office.

The Linux debate:
Which distro do you pick? Slackware? RedHat? CentOS? Debian? Ubuntu?
Can you easily change distros?
Can you easily upgrade a Linux system?
And let me not forget… Which WM do I choose? Gnome? KDE? GnuStep? Xfce?

Honestly, Linux was worse as a desktop OS than Windows. I went back to Windows in 2005, including my main home system. And was greeted with all the Windows headaches I was dreading.

Yes, I could have run Windows in VMWare, and I did. Although Windows under VMWare was MUCH more stable, with almost no driver issues, that still didn’t fix the problems.

When Apple moved to Intel, the only barriers I had were my own views about Apple.

Before Apple switched to MacOS X, I would never even have looked at one. Co-operative multi-tasking? Really? Then Mac OS X was announced, and I paid attention. Unix stability, pre-emptive multi-tasking. It looked interesting, but the PowerPC thing didn’t help. The Intel announcement changed that. Then the ability to run Windows virtually made it a most viable option. I bought a second-hand MacBook in 2006. And I have never looked back.

OS X has the stability I wanted, but with an ease of management no Windows machine could ever match. All my devices were plugin and go. No driver issues, no dealing with configuration issues. Just… Using it.

I cannot believe how stupid I was before, believing that computers were complicated and needed special skills to use effectively. Now, I USE my computer, rather than having to manage it.

Even upgrades have been a breeze. What’s a clean install again? I haven’t done one in 5 years. I’ve gone from 10.4 Tiger to Leopard to Snow Leopard to 10.7 Lion. All in-place upgrades. No data loss, and no hassles…. But one.

The only hassle I had was switching from FileVault in Tiger to FV in Leopard (sparseimages vs sparsebundles). The hassle was… Waiting for FV to decrypt my 250GB of data, then pressing the button to encrypt in the new FV. Now, I have to do it again with Lion as FV here is full disk… I haven’t switched yet, but I may soon. As hassles go though, this is… nothing.

Lion, on a 2006 MacBook. And it’s smooth, faster than Snow Leopard, and Safari is a bit better. (Yes, Safari sucks, but now I can kill just the web content thread to clear memory instead of the whole browser.) There are some interface changes I don’t like, but they don’t get in my way.

Back to Linux… Been there done that. Great for LAMP servers, rotten for desktop. Windows. Loathe it, and have since about 1999.

=====
I do like a good debate, but I think these ones regarding Windows/Mac get tiresome, and “I’m too old for this shit!”… It’s like Ford vs Chevy. At least there, the difference is simply religious, not logical. With Windows/Mac/Linux, there are logical reasons for choosing either, but most arguments are with loyalists with the same religious fervor for their product as in the Ford/Chevy arguments.

On that note, if you had asked people in 1916 who had Model T Fords if they would drive a Packard, they would probably have told you without fail that they have either never heard of Packards, or that they are too expensive. In 1927, that story was probably different.

It’s the same with Macs. If you ask 100 people on the street (maybe 6 years ago), about 85% would have said that they have never used a Mac, will never buy a Mac because they’re too expensive, or that they’ve never heard of them (Silicon Valley not withstanding). Computers are not a big part of most people’s lives. Most couldn’t tell you what 1600×1200 is, what HD really means, or even what a hard drive is (most think it’s “the box on the floor”). With that level of ignorance, what makes you think they would even know there was a choice?

This ignorance also means they don’t know to upgrade Windows, or even what an upgrade is. And if there is any trouble, they have to pay for it to be fixed. They would rather just leave well enough alone. It works. They turn it on, do what they want, then turn it off. Why mess with it? Why pay more money? Most Windows 7 installations are only there because users bought new PCs, not because of upgrades. It’s been over two years since Win 7 was released, but XP is still more popular. This isn’t the same on the Mac. Most upgrade. The $30 price point is a good driver there. Plus upgrades are generally not threatening on the Mac.

In the UK, most people I’ve encountered (no rich folks here) had never even heard of Macs. The few that have have never used one, and claim that they’re too expensive. Computer courses here are simply how to use Windows. There’s no mention of Mac, Linux, Unix, or anything else. For most people, Windows is what comes with the PC, not a choice they can make.

That’s the real reason 90% are Windows today. There’s no choice for most people.. In the UK, I’m sure the Mac market share in 2005 was less than 1%.

The Apple Store is the thing that opens people’s eyes to other choices (well, Apple choices). It’s why most new Macs are purchased by those who have never owned a Mac. Other computer stores, especially here in the UK, have a few old Macs, but they don’t highlight them. They are separated and shown as a “different system”. Heck, even Fry’s separates Macs from PCs. A small aisle for Macs, but the rest of the store dedicated to PCs. Apple needed the Apple Store to change that. Placed in prominent locations, it’s done quite well.

On the Android front…

Without IBM’s PC, Windows would not have taken off so quickly. Maybe not at all. The reverse in terms of hardware and software is true with smart phones. Most of today’s smart phones would not have been without Android. Samsung was never a smart phone leader, but Android propelled them to that height.

Android was a quick entry to market for these new smart phone manufacturers.

Android is a cheap easy answer to iOS, just like Windows was to Macs in the 1990s. The difference is that handsets have traditionally been throwaway devices. PCs weren’t/aren’t. Handsets are normally changed once every 2-3 years (I’m on my second iPhone – Original is too outdated.) with little or no loyalty. People buy what’s on offer, what looks neat, or what they hear is good. The financial incentive of a reduced price or free phone is a major driver. iPhones are rarely free, unless you pay a butt-load for your contract. Android phones are a dime a dozen. Calling that market share a win is ignoring the reason behind it. iPhone buyers mostly do so to buy an iPhone. Android buyers mostly do so to get a phone.

Tablets don’t have the same type of market. There are no price subsidies, so price incentives don’t influence the purchases. iPad sells at least 10* that of the nearest competitor, and that’s without any kind of financial incentive. Will Android ever be able to compete? Not as long as tablet makers just slap together machines like they do phones, where they vanish from the market after a month or so.

===
And yes, I’m a stubborn mule. I know it. But I am open to good debates where personal feelings of correctness are not the driving force. We all have opinions, but I try not to ignore the facts surrounding my opinions.

I like Ford better than Chevy, but that’s just my preference, with no logical reason. They both do the same thing, are just as reliable as each other, and have similar feature sets. There look and feel apply, but it’s not logical, and I know it. Honestly, I like Audis better than anything, in the 1984-1993 range. Why??? Will I ever change my car choice? Not sure. Will financial incentives help? Maybe.

My Mac choice is a logical one though. The stability, lack of constant management, and the fact that I have not had a hassle, even with my 5 year old unit, are great reasons to stay right here. I now use zero Windows apps, and I love it. I have no Linux desires any more either. Back in 2005, I didn’t have the choice of Macs. 2006, I did.

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_4NJB3SZJ7VRYD5TJOM6ZNZHZIM Sweyn78

One word: “Screenshots”.

Problem solved.

Anonymous

I meant to post…

There’s no point in talking about market share. A report in 2008 showed that Apple alone sells about 66% of computers above $1000. The market share argument is great for the low priced market, but most PCs of any capability cost… $1000+.

Profit is what counts when selling computers, not market share.

The market share of Android is more than iOS… but phones aren’t sold only on choice. They are sold as incentives for contracts. Most people who choose iPhones gladly pay more for the contracts. The same can’t be said for Android phones. The race to the bottom, which is what it amounts to with the free OS Android, is all theirs to have.

Choice is not a good thing at all times. Some examples.

Car pedal arrangements. If there was a “choice” here, there would be more accidents caused by pedal confusion.

The list goes on… All “choices”. All confusing. None helpful. The end result is about the same in performance and quality.

Why do you believe computer users should have to go through the same nonsense like these examples just to satisfy your desire for “choice”?

DVD has ONE standard. Everyone can use it. No “choice”. A DVD is a DVD.
The extra “choices” do little to help the end user, and rarely are the different “choices” any better than the most common item. I have yet to see a “choice” that helps anything other than cheating people out of their money.

Anonymous

Wow, this is all actually pretty nice…

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_EOFSMSYQJ2MHK7KGY236T5K5IQ Saturn

I’ve loved the Ribbon since day one, end of story

http://twitter.com/gangstanick gangstanick

THEY SERIOUSLY need to do it like Apple, put the medium sized icons in the ribbon. Look at how messy it looks, the ribbon has big icons, then little icons with no padding on the bottom, it’s just messy as F***!!!! They should have just put medium sized icons like Apple did, then when you click on the icon, a little menu pops up… IS IT REALLY THAT HARD TO MAKE A PRETTY INTERFACE!?!?!?!?! Damnit!!!! I have windows 7 on all my machines, but I’m seriously considering switching to Apple because Windows is just so damn ugly, and windows 8 doesn’t look like much of a makeover.

Anonymous

If aesthetics are really that important to you I’m surprised you’re not already using Mac

Stephen Herfst

That’s not a valid argument. By that rationale, you’ll be perfectly accepting of an ugly interface just because they designed it that way? Hey, I can design ugly easily .. pretty (and useful) take effort

Anonymous

This is good news. Now will we get the classic windows GUI as well? Sounds like MS finally listened to why many of us still use XP.

http://twitter.com/quazl QuazL

I really don’t like the mac versus windows jive, I work on both and at the end of the day they are great machines, but to fuel the fire i can say that I can work faster on a windows machine. I know most of all shortcuts on both machines and windows 7 is by far the best platform for working with a keyboard and with files and folders.

Here is the biggest flaw in Finder. If you say “replace” to a folder on folder paste it will replace everything in the folder. If you do this in windows it only writes over files that are the same name within the folder. The next biggest flaw is window management in Snow Leopard: It has none. I hear that Lion i s better.

Finder and mac dialog popups have zero standardization when it comes to keyboard shortcuts. Try navigating through system preferences with just a keyboard. When your bluetooth mouse goes out on your mac pro try doing anything productive.

Windows and all first party apps can easily by controlled by only a keyboard.

The best thing about finder and Mac os is spaces. Nothing can beat this gem of a tool.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk Sebastian Anthony

Thanks for the input :)

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_SJIKIPVFNIURHLGFKKV6H43XUA Mark

“the ribbon takes up an inordinate amount of real estate”
It looks like the Office Ribbon which can be set to Minimize and get out of the way until needed: the up arrow on the right top corner of the Ribbon. Also if it’s like the Office Ribbon, the icons and display likely resize according to the window size and screen resolution. It’s nice that it adapts, but it kind of goes against the whole idea of the Ribbon being consistent in the first place.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk Sebastian Anthony

Yep, it can be minimized to just the headers (File, Home, Share, etc.)

Wayne Collins

It seems most of these comments regarding windows explorer come from power users or users that spend alot of time getting into the nitty gritty of every explorer function. Don’t forget that most users of computers don’t have the need or the inclination to get that involved with the workings of a computer, they just want to get things done. The ribbon has been a godsend to those same people who use MS Office and I’m sure it will help regular users get more fuctionality out of Explorer.

Wayne Collins

It seems most of these comments regarding windows explorer come from power users or users that spend alot of time getting into the nitty gritty of every explorer function. Don’t forget that most users of computers don’t have the need or the inclination to get that involved with the workings of a computer, they just want to get things done. The ribbon has been a godsend to those same people who use MS Office and I’m sure it will help regular users get more fuctionality out of Explorer.

Anonymous

http://www.lovetoshopping.org

Chris Ed.

It looks messy and ugly as hell.
I’m not saying it’s a bad thing (actually seems like a very useful feature), but it could have a better overall design.

David Cardona

But I still don’t understand why they don’t put tabs. it’s a no brainer.

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